


The Stunning Adventures of Ardeth and Jonathan Part 2: The Awakening

by the_technicolor_whiscash



Series: The Stunning Adventures of Ardeth and Jonathan [2]
Category: The Mummy (1999), The Mummy Returns (2001), The Mummy Series
Genre: Post-The Mummy Returns, a touch of violence, this sure is something
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-21
Updated: 2017-06-21
Packaged: 2018-11-16 19:39:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11259609
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_technicolor_whiscash/pseuds/the_technicolor_whiscash
Summary: 1933. Just after the events with the Scorpion King. Evy and Rick leave, while Jonathan stays behind. Ardeth finds him, and they reconnect.





	The Stunning Adventures of Ardeth and Jonathan Part 2: The Awakening

**Author's Note:**

> this is something

The year was 1933. The events with the Scorpion King had winded down, and everything was going back to normal. Though I suppose normal is subjective, when you spend your days fighting mummies. 

After some extended goodbyes, Rick and Evelyn returned to London with their son. Jonathan, however, stayed behind. He claimed it was so he could “explore the women and alcohols of Egypt.” But I knew his real motives. The poor man had no idea what his place in life was. Even in ten years, he realized he had been reduced in most circles to the snappy comic relief. And that wasn't what he wanted. 

At first, he tried to go off on his own. He made it about a week before I found him bruised and drunk outside of a cheap motel. 

“Ello, old chap!” He slurred upon seeing me. 

“Hello, Jonathan. Doing well, I see.”

“Don't patronize me.” 

“What happened?”

“Couple of blokes in a bar tried to mess with a girl. In my noble defense of her, I got beat to shit.”

“I can see that.” I smiled and held my hand out. “Want to crash with me?” 

He clasped my hand and stood up, swaying a little. “Just like old times, eh?”

“Quite.”

He threw his arm around my neck, and I led him towards where I had been camped. During the situation with the Scorpion King, he and I didn't get much time to reconnect, so I figured now we could finally get some time to chat. I had realized, upon seeing him again, that I had greatly missed him. Though we had been exchanging letters, it just wasn't the same as talking to someone in person, or seeing the way their eyes light up when they talk of something they're passionate about. Plus, Jonathan was one of my closest friends. Sure, I had friends amongst the medjai, but Jonathan was… different. He was more to me than just a casual acquaintance or a drinking buddy. He was… well, he was Jonathan. 

My camp at that time was a moderately sized tent, stuck amongst the tents of many medjai. We walked in, and immediately I realized the one thing that would make his stay less desirable. 

“I only have one cot. You can take it, I'll sleep on the ground.”

“No, I couldn't do that to you. You’re the one who invited me to stay with you. You should get the cot.”

“No, no. I insist. It'll help ease the hangover I'm sure you'll have in the morning.”

“Hangovers aside, I’d hate to be infringing on your hospitality.”

“You’d be doing nothing of the sort. Tomorrow I can ask around for another cot, but in the meantime, you should take it.”

“Besides, I have extensive experience with sleeping on the ground! It's your bed, take it.”

I could see that this was going nowhere. “Well, either one of us is going to have to take the bed, or the both of us are going to sleep on the ground.” 

“Or,” his voice grew quieter, “we could take the cot together. I'm sure it'd hold our weight.”

I didn't quite know how to respond. On one hand, it did solve our problems, and kept both of us out of the sand. On the other hand, I worried about what might happen if we did lay in bed together. I'm somewhat ashamed to think of the thoughts that ran through my head, of the possibilities of what might be. The concept wasn't a concept to be ashamed of, that was to be sure. But the thought of doing it with Jonathan surprised me. 

But he was still fairly drunk. And he may not feel the same way in the morning. 

“I… I’ll take the ground. Be more room for you on the cot.”

He looked slightly disappointed, but conceded. “Alright, fine. I was hoping for the cot anyway.”

As I lay atop my blankets, feeling the sand shifting beneath me, I wondered what might have been had I accepted his offer to sleep with him on the cot. There was, of course, the off chance that nothing would have happened. But in all likelihood, something would have happened between us, disrupting whatever sort of established friendship we had in the first place. But I realized that I wanted something to happen between us. And I think he wanted that too. At least, he did when he was drunk. 

\---------------

The next week or so went by with little hindrance, and with no mention of Jonathan’s inclinations towards me. I went about my daily business, with Jonathan tagging along behind me. He provided a nice release from the monotony of daily life, often adding a comedic element to even the most mundane task. But I knew it couldn't last. Soon, the medjai would be leaving, off to a different city, and I would have to go with them. So, one day, when we were riding on horseback to examine a tomb which had reportedly been causing problems, I decided to tell him. 

“Jonathan, you are aware that the medjai are nomadic?”

“Sure.”

“Then you must realize that soon, I must leave with them, off to a different city or town.”

“Well, yes, I had guessed that.”

“And so I assume you know what that means for you.”

“Yes. I'll be kicked to the curb, just like I've been with everyone else.”

“Jonathan, it’s not like that. You could come with us, of course, but it is a very rough lifestyle, and many of the medjai wonder why you still linger amongst us.”

“I can handle the rough lifestyle and you know it. Your friends don't want me here, and so I’ll just have to face that.”

“If it was entirely up to me, you could stay with us for as long as you wished. Hell, you could join our ranks, for all I care. But it is not just up to me. I have tried to convince the others, but…”

“I know you try your best, old chap. I really do. And I don't blame you for anything. It's just… I don't want to leave again. I leave, and I go, and I get drunk, and I get beat up and left for dead. I don't know what to do with myself sometimes, Ardeth. But when I'm around you, I just feel so much more… whole. I feel like I don't have to worry about who I am around you.”

“I’m glad you feel that way. I missed seeing you, all those years you were in England.”

“I missed you too. I don't think I realized it until I came back.” 

The conversation paused when we realized we had reached our destination. The tomb of an ancient priest, once lost to the ages under the waves of sand, now stood erect in the desert. And, according to eyewitness accounts, the priest was coming back to kill. 

“Here we are.” I said. “You may want to arm yourself. Things may get messy. And stay wary.”

“After that deal with the Scorpion King, I don't think anything can surprise me anymore.”

“Just you wait. In my years as a medjai, I've seen things that even the worst of horror novelists couldn't describe.”

Jonathan pulled out a revolver and checked the chambers. “Certainly sounds wonderful. I can't wait to see what'll be in store down there.”

Before we could even enter the tomb, a loud screech emanated from within. A dark figure began crawling out of the shadows, and I put a hand on my sword. 

“What the bloody hell’s that?” Jonathan exclaimed.

“I believe that's the undead priest.”

“Well. At least he decided to come up to greet us.”

I took a step back as the creature crawled towards us. It really did crawl instead of walking, and once it came into the light, I could tell that someone must've shot the thing in the leg. That was good news. That meant it could be killed. But I also didn't know exactly what it could do. 

The creature, upon seeing us, sort of looked us up and down. After a moment, it growled again, and at that moment I realized why so many people were terrified of it. Because it summoned cats. Hundreds and hundreds of cats, galloping towards us. 

“I survive Imhotep and the Scorpion King, and now I'm going to be killed by a bunch of cats.” Jonathan sighed. “Fitting, really.”

I pulled out my sword and readied it towards the creature. “Have a little faith, my friend. We will not die today.”

The creature didn't seem to want to move any further, so I began to approach it. Suddenly, when I was a few feet away, it leapt towards me, long claws outstretched from its hands. But its shattered leg greatly restricted its movement, which gave me a bit of leverage in the fight. I slashed away at it, my blows being consistently deflected by its claws. Several times it tried to fight back, but I was the far better fighter. 

At one point I briefly looked over my shoulder, to see Jonathan flickering between staring at the cats and at me and the creature. He gripped his gun, and I could tell he was waiting for the tide of the fight to change. 

But in that brief moment, the creature surprised me, catching me across the left shoulder with its claws. I flew backward into the sand, my sword flying out of my hand. The creature crawled towards me and moved its arm up, and I closed my eyes and braced myself for another hit. 

Instead of a hit, I heard a gunshot. Then another and another. Opening my eyes, I saw Jonathan standing beside me, angrily shooting the creature. And the creature clearly did not take the hits well. It began to quite literally fall apart, its limbs being absorbed into the sand, until all that was left was some scraps of ancient wrappings and something gold. The army of cats, which had almost reached us, abruptly stopped and turned around. 

Jonathan leaned down next to me, helping me sit up. “Are you alright? Did it hurt you badly?”

I looked at the wound on my shoulder. “It's not deep. Just a little… just a little painful, that's all.” 

“We should get you to a doctor, but for now, I can help you. Can you take your shirt off?”

I slid my shirt off, and Jonathan examined the wound. 

“You were right, it's not deep. But we still need to get it covered up.” He pulled out a flask of something, which I assumed to be alcohol. “You're going to want to bite down on something. This is going to hurt.” 

I bit down on my sleeve as he poured the alcohol over my wound, and the pain was almost overwhelming. Stars skipped across my vision, and for a moment, I feared I would pass out. Luckily, the majority of the pain subsided, and I was left with just a throbbing sort of pain. 

Jonathan pulled bandages from who knows where, and began to bandage the wound. I hadn't realized just how much blood there was. And I had no idea that Jonathan had any medical expertise at all. He finished bandaging the wound, and he nodded. 

“Alright. Good as new. Just try not to use that arm too much.”

I pulled my shirt back on. It was ripped, but I didn't really have much of a choice. “Thank you. Where did you learn such skills?” 

“The Great War. Even the class clown had to go off and fight at some point. I was just glad I made it back alive.”

“You don't strike me as the soldier type.”

“That's what a lot of people say. But there were many boys who weren't the soldier type who had to go to war. Whether you were the soldier type or not, you had to become one.”

I could tell I had struck a nerve. “I apologize if I touched on something personal.” 

“It's no big deal. Besides, it's good to get it off my chest.” 

It was then that I realized the sun was beginning to set. It would be dark soon, and desert nights are never particularly pleasant outside. “We should head back before it gets too dark.” 

“Right. It's probably a bad time to mention that our horses ran off when the cats started stampeding.” 

“Then we’ll just have to walk. It’s only a few miles.”

I stood, and we began the long walk back to the tent I called home.

**Author's Note:**

> Yes I am planning on a third part and it's. It's gonna be. It's gonna be something too.


End file.
